A Pair of Veela
by just.a.tad.crazy
Summary: A veela story. Updated: May 28th, 2014.
1. Awaken the Veela

As the clock chimed to signal the beginning of June 5th, the pain that tore through his body came as no surprise to Draco Malfoy. He had known for years that his sixteenth birthday would be accompanied by his inheritance and the changes that came with it. As pure white wings erupted from his back, he screeched in agony. He could feel the blood sliding down his back, dripping from his new feathers, but the pain rushing through his body distracted him from the sensation. Then, as suddenly as it had begun, it was over. He collapsed onto his bed, exhausted, as the intense pain faded from his body.

He could feel a whole new ache forming in his heart. The need for his mate. It wasn't too painful yet, and there was no accompanying tugging sensation, so it was doubtful that his mate had come into their inheritance. Yet. He sighed heavily. His mate could be anyone with veela blood. They wouldn't necessarily be a light veela like himself, they could just as easily be a dark veela.

He hoped that they were similar in age to himself. It was possible for his mate to be several years his junior, but it wasn't all that likely. It really depended on how many veela there were in the world a similar age to himself. His mate would be a perfect match for him, but only because the second mate was always created that way. While the second mate was in the womb, the first mate's magic would call out to them, allowing the second mate's magic to recognize them. This formed the bond between the mates and ensured that their magic was compatible.

He did know that they were already born or he wouldn't feel the ache at all. He really didn't want to wait years for his mate though. Even before his mate came into their inheritance, prolonged absence from his mate would slowly drive him insane. It would be much more of a danger once his mate reached their sixteenth birthday.

He drifted off to sleep, knowing that there was nothing he could do until his mate reached their own sixteenth birthday and came into their veela inheritance. For now, he needed to rest.

DMHP

Harry shrieked in pain. He had been staying awake to welcome his sixteenth birthday, as was his tradition, when the pain had struck. It was horrible and seemed to literally tear through his body, focusing on his back. He could feel something tearing through the skin, and it felt like a live animal trying to escape his flesh. Jet black wings tore themselves from his skin.

As the pain faded, he reflected that it was a good thing that his relatives were out of town for a few weeks. He shuddered to think how they would have reacted to being woken up in the middle of the night by his screams to find that he had grown wings. As he drifted off to sleep, the last thing he noticed was an ache forming in his chest.

DMHP 

Draco snapped awake, the ache in his chest reaching an entirely new level. He gasped for breath. So his mate had come into their inheritance. He would have to find them, soon. He smiled, at least his mate was less than two months his junior. If they attended Hogwarts, then they should be in his year. He would go to Hogwarts then. If his mate was not there, he would make visits to all the major wizarding schools, such as Beauxbatons and Durmstrang, to search. He should find his mate by Christmas.

Which was very necessary. After six months passed following his mate's birthday, if they still weren't mated, they would both begin to lose their minds. Hmmm… He wondered who his mate could be. It was impossible to say whether or not he already knew them. They were most likely male, as he was usually attracted to men. However, strange things had been known to happen. At least there was only a month until Hogwarts. He would know whether his mate was there soon enough.

DMHP

Harry sighed. It had been three weeks since he had grown the feathery black wings and he still had no idea of how to get rid of them. He had taken to not wearing a shirt while he was inside during the day, as his wings weren't comfortable that way. The ache in his chest had also failed to go away. His relatives were coming back today and he doubted that their reaction to his new appendages would be positive. At least he had managed to get everything done on the list that they had left him. He had also spent hours making sure the garden and the house were perfect. They would have little to complain about otherwise.

Harry cringed as he heard the car pull into the driveway. They were back. He hurried up the stairs and threw on one of Dudley's hand-me-down shirts. Hopefully the baggy t-shirt would conceal his wings enough that the Dursleys wouldn't notice them right away.

""Boy!" Came the shout from downstairs. "Come get the bags!" Harry ran down the stairs and headed out to the car to unload the Dursleys belongings. He made several trips to get them all in the house before turning to lug his relatives' suitcases up to their rooms. Unfortunately, his Uncle Vernon noticed the strange lump in the back of his shirt. "What's the matter with your back, boy?" He reached out, grabbing one of Harry's wings harshly. Harry shrieked in pain, dropping the suitcases.

Vernon tore off the shirt to investigate, revealing Harry's black, feathered wings. "What have you done now boy!" he growled. "You're an even bigger freak than before! Your not even allowed to use your freakish powers here! How did you do it?" He threw Harry to the ground, kicking him hard in the side. He kicked Harry again, who began to crawl towards the kitchen, trying to get away from his uncle. His side was beginning to really hurt and one of his wings seemed to be bent funny, from when his uncle had grabbed it through his shirt.

"Get out of my house, you freak!" his uncle thundered, throwing open the back door. "Vernon! Quiet! The neighbours will hear you!" Petunia looked around outside, checking for witnesses. "What if they see him?" she hissed.

"I've had it Petunia! This is the last time that that boy will ever be in my house you hear me! That freak doesn't belong here!" He kicked Harry in the back, sending him crashing into the back yard, causing further pain to shoot through his damaged wing.

As Harry started to lose consciousness, he found himself wishing desperately that he was somewhere safe, somewhere is relatives couldn't get to him. He just wanted to be safe. That was his final thought as his world faded to black.

Aunt Petunia stormed past her husband into the backyard. She had no problem getting rid of her good-for-nothing nephew, but why couldn't Vernon have kicked the boy out at night? What if the neighbours saw him? However, once in the backyard she couldn't find him anyway. The freak had seemed to be in bad shape, where could he have gotten to so fast? But try as she might, she couldn't find the boy anywhere.

DMHP

It was too hot, Professor Snape grumbled to himself as he headed back towards the castle. Despite the fact that it was summer break, he was still dressed in his usual long, black robes and they were far too heavy in the heat of the summer sun. At least today had been productive. He had gathered up numerous ingredients from the Forbidden Forest in order to stock up his supplies. As he looked over the deserted grounds, he reflected that there was at least one part of summer he liked. The absence of the noisy brats known as his students.

As he passed the lake, he noticed a strange lump lying not far from the water's edge. Had one of the creatures of the forest wandered this far? Was it injured? As he got closer, he realized that is was a boy. And not just any boy. Closer inspection revealed two dark wings sticking out of his back. A dark veela. The potions master swore under his breath and hurried over.

The veela appeared to be unconscious and one of its wings was bent at a dangerous angle. There also appeared to be some severe bruising on the boy's side. It didn't look much older than sixteen and he suspected that it had only come into its inheritance that summer. But what was an injured veela doing on the Hogwarts grounds?

He scooped up the injured boy, unsure of what effect his magic would have on the dark veela's natural shadow magic. He headed for the hospital wing, knowing that Madame Pomphrey had returned to the school a week early to prepare for the upcoming year. As he lifted the boy, the tousled, black hair fell out of the veela's face. Professor Snape nearly dropped him in surprise.

It was Harry Potter.

DMHP

Draco paced the train car, extremely agitated. The ache in his chest was no less painful than it had been for this past month. That alone told him that his mate was not on the Hogwarts Express. The ache would have lessened as he had gotten closer to his mate, as the veela bond would be more content. So either his mate was using a different method of transportation to get to Hogwarts, or they didn't attend his school at all.

He sighed, frustrated, and flopped down on one of the seats. He had taken a compartment to himself and locked the door. He didn't want to see his friends or anyone else right now. He didn't want to have to explain anything to anyone until he found his mate and had assured himself that they were safe.

His back itched uncomfortably. His mother had taught him how to draw his wings into his body so that he could blend in, but that didn't mean it was comfortable. He decided to try and get some sleep. He wouldn't be able to do anything about trying to find his mate until they arrived at Hogwarts. And if his mate wasn't there, then he would have to go look for them. He would find them. Somewhere. He had to.

DMHP

As Draco entered the castle, he instantly felt the ache in his chest give way. His mate was here. Instead of heading to the great hall, he turned, following the faint tugging sensation in his chest, and sprinted down the hallway. The ache continued to fade, replaced by a warm, safe feeling. As he neared his mate, he started to panic. He was heading for the hospital wing.


	2. Finding My Other Half

"Where is he?" came the screech as the blonde tore into the hospital wing, white wings tearing through the fabric of his shirt. Madame Pomfrey rushed over, trying to calm the enraged veela down. He refused to listen to anything she was saying, but he turned his attention on her instead. "Where is he? I know he's in here. I can feel him." He growled. "You can't hide him from me. I will find him." He pushed past her, following the pull he had felt since he had entered the school. It was weaker now, as though it thought its job was done because he was so close to his mate. It annoyed him. He wasn't close enough. Not until he found them and made sure that they were completely safe from harm.

A small form lay curled up under the blankets in one of the cots, and Draco stalked over. A rush of calm washed over him as he realized that this was the one he was looking for, his mate. But what was wrong with them? Why were they here? He gently pulled back the blankets so that he could see them. A small, pale body lay there in the standard infirmary pajamas. Cuts had been made in the top, so that his mate's beautiful black wings could stick through. A dark veela. His mate was too thin, he mused. He would have to get them to eat more. Black hair fell over their face, obscuring it from Draco's view, but already he could tell his mate was beautiful. A delicate, beautiful boy, and he was all Draco's.

He raised a hand to gently brush the hair from his mate's face, but he tensed as Madame Pomfrey bustled over. The need to protect his mate from these people rose up again and he began to growl lowly, surprised when she simply rolled her eyes. "Enough Mr. Malfoy. I am only helping him. He was found unconscious a few days ago out on the grounds. He was injured, but he is mostly healed now. His ribs may still be tender. He needs to sleep. He is malnourished and very weak. You'd best be quiet if you are going to stay. I assume from your reaction you are the one we've been waiting for?"

Draco nodded dumbly. So at least his mate would be okay, but he looked so weak, so small on the hospital bed. Well, they would never have to be strong again. Draco would protect them. So, someone here must know something about veela if they had known that the beautiful creature on the bed would have a mate that would come looking for them.

He sniffed his mate, wrapping himself in the smell. Learning it well, so that he would be able to track it at any distance if something ever happened to this being that was now his. He stiffened slightly as he found another smell on his mate. Something other than Madame Pomfrey and the other numerous smells of the hospital wing. Something stronger than the faint smells that he assumed were from his mate's home. One he knew.

At that moment, the owner of the scent walked into the hospital wing. Draco stormed over, demanding to know why his godfather's scent was on his mate. But before he could get a word out, Professor Snape lifted his hand. "Enough. So it is you. I can't say I'm surprised. You are the only student I know with the veela gene. Your mate will have to stay here for a few more days, as I am sure Madame Pomfrey has told you. They need to recover. They are malnourished, exhausted and weak. Do you understand Draco?"

Draco growled lowly, ignoring his godfather. Yes, the nurse had already told him all of this. Well, not that she would be keeping his mate, but Draco had assumed this would be the case. Well, if she thought he was just going to leave his mate here and head to his dorm, she was sadly mistaken.

He turned his mind back to the problem at hand. His godfather. "Why does he smell of you?" he growled lowly. Professor Snape simply nodded, as though he had been expecting this question. "I found him by the lake and brought him here. I am also the only person in the castle who seems to know anything about veela, so I have been instructing Madame Pomfrey in how to look after him. Despite how he may feel towards me Draco, I am not a threat to your mate."

"What do you mean?" Draco screeched. "Why is he afraid of you? I will never let you near him again if you mean him harm."

His godfather sighed. "Draco, I just said that I am not a threat. I just meant that your mate has not been quick to trust me in the past." Seeing Draco's look of confusion. The potions master paused. "Draco, do you even realize who your mate is?" Draco shook his head slowly. No, he hadn't gotten close enough to look. It must be someone he knew though, based on Professor Snape's reaction. His godfather sighed again. "Draco, that boy, it's Harry Potter."

Draco suddenly went still. His mate? Harry Potter? He despised Potter. Although, he knew he would never be able to again. That boy on the bed, the one he had pledged to protect, it didn't matter who he was. Draco would take care of him anyway. Nodding numbly at his godfather, he turned around and headed back to the bed where his mate lay. Professor Snape wordlessly followed, gauging Draco's reaction and watching to make sure the blonde didn't do anything drastic with this new knowledge.

Draco reached down to gently brush the black hair away from his mate's face. It was longer than Potter's usually was, but Draco wasn't sure if it was an effect of his inheritance or if the boy simply hadn't bothered to cut it in a while. It appeared to fall to Potter's shoulders, but it was hard to tell while the boy was lying down.

It didn't really matter that Potter was on the light side of the war. Draco had no wish to join his father's insane master and his mother wasn't a follower either. With his father safely locked up in Azkaban, his mate had little to fear from Draco's family. The veela side of Draco would never have allowed him to put his mate in harm's way anyway. In a way, he was glad that his mate had turned out to be Potter, and not one of the other Death Eater's children. If that had happened, he might have been forced to follow the Dark Lord after all, in an attempt to keep them safe.

Potter, no - Harry, if he was going to spend the rest of his life with his mate, he would have to get used to referring to him as Harry. Harry whimpered as Draco touched him, pushing his face slightly into Draco's hand despite being asleep, as though he needed more of Draco's touch.

There was no mistaking the boy as Harry now that his hair didn't block his face. As he took his hand away, the small boy whimpered again, crying out slightly at the lost of contact. Draco immediately placed his hand on his mate's arm and the boy calmed down. Decision made, Draco kicked off his shoes and climbed into bed with the dark veela, pressing his chest into Harry's back and wings, gently enough not to hurt them, and wrapping his arm around Harry. Any tension in the smaller boy faded immediately at the contact and he slept soundly once more.

Draco glared as his godfather and the nurse, challenging them to dispute his right as Harry's mate. His godfather simply nodded and left, while the nurse simply huffed in an exasperated manner and continued to work.

Lowering his face to press it into the back of Harry's neck, he breathed in the scent of his beautiful mate. It calmed him considerably and soon he followed his mate into sleep.


	3. Just a Tad Confused

Harry blinked at the sunlight streaming in from the window as he opened his eyes. Wait a minute. Window? Last he remembered, he had collapsed in his uncle's backyard. What had happened? Where was he? Sitting up, he scanned the room, quickly realizing that he was in the hospital wing of Hogwarts. This place was definitely no stranger to him, but how had he gotten here? The strange feeling that someone was watching him came over him and he turned around. And promptly fell out of the bed as he scrambled away from the other boy.

What the hell was Draco Malfoy doing in his hospital bed? Malfoy didn't seem surprised at all to see Harry. He sat up and leaned over the bed slightly, so that he could continue to stare at Harry. It was a little unnerving.

Madame Pomfrey chose that moment to come out from her office. "Mr. Potter! You are awake! How do you feel?" She seemed unsurprised to find him on the floor and simply came over and helped him sit back up on the bed, seeming not the least bit concerned that it was already occupied by Malfoy. Strangely, when she asked him how he was, he noticed that the pain in his chest had disappeared. How strange. "Now I am sure that you are very confused, but we'll get everything cleared up in a moment. First I just want to check how your recovery is coming."

A low growl interrupted her as she drew her wand. "Oh enough Mr. Malfoy. I am casting a simple diagnostic charm. Nothing to be concerned about." Harry stared blankly at Malfoy who stopped growling, but continued to glare at the nurse. Why would Malfoy be concerned that the nurse was checking up on Harry? It wasn't like anyone was casting a spell on Malfoy. He turned back to the nurse and she quickly finished up.

"Well you seem to be doing much better. Malfoy's magic has definitely been helping your recovery. You are free to go once you have spoken with Mr. Malfoy. I believe he has a few things to explain to you?" This last part was directed at Malfoy who simply nodded. "Alright." She continued. "After that you are to head up to Dumbledore's office to see him. Both of you. Password is acid pops." With that she left, heading back into her office.

Harry turned to Malfoy, warily. What did he have to do with anything? He continued to simply watch Harry, as though looking for some kind of reaction to the confusion the smaller boy was feeling. Harry sighed. "Well?"

Malfoy nodded, as though he had been waiting for Harry's permission to speak. "Harry, did these appear on your sixteenth birthday?" He reached out a hand cautiously, as though afraid that the raven-haired boy would bolt, and stroked one of the black wings. Harry nodded hesitantly, trying to ignore how good it felt when Malfoy touched his wings. Why was Malfoy using his first name? What was going on? Malfoy nodded to himself, as though he had already known what Harry's answer would be. "I want to show you something."

Harry watched, confused, as a pair of white wings stretched from Draco's back where they had been neatly folded. How had he not noticed them? Did this mean that Malfoy was whatever Harry was? But why were his white?

"We are veela Harry. You are a dark veela, hence your black wings, where as I am a light veela. Other than the colours, they are very similar, although their powers differ a little too. We'll talk about that more later." He noticed Harry staring at his wings in awe. "You can touch them if you like."

Harry reached out carefully and stroked one of the wings gently. They were so soft! He wondered why they were larger than his own, but decided that they were probably just proportional to the veela's size. That would make sense, as Malfoy was much bigger than him. He jerked away as if burned when the touch caused Malfoy to start purring. What was going on?

"Now as a dark veela, your powers have more to do with shadows while mine are more fire based. I'll help you train so that you don't lose control of your magic. You will also find that you are much more powerful than you were before." Malfoy laughed softly, smiling gently at Harry. "Not that you've ever really lacked that." Harry glanced down, scared for the first time. He was even more different now? More of a freak? Wasn't it enough that he was the chosen one? The boy who lived? Why did he constantly have to be set apart from everyone else? It wasn't fair.

Malfoy seemed to sense his change in mood and carefully pulled Harry to him, so that Harry's wings were pressed gently against his chest. He crooned softly and stroked Harry's hair, as though trying to comfort him. "It's okay little one. I'll keep you safe." Well, this was different. Just what was Malfoy up to?

Harry turned around in Malfoy's arms to peer up at the taller boy. "Why Malfoy? Why are you helping me?"

Malfoy gave him that gentle smile once more. As though he didn't want to scare Harry away. Just what was he hiding? It had to be something pretty significant, judging by the way he had been treating Harry since he had woken up. "Harry, all veela have destined mates for them that they don't get to choose. Their mates are other veela, but it there is no distinction between light and dark veela." Suddenly Harry seemed to sense where this was going. No, that couldn't be right. There was no way. They had been enemies for too long. There was no way that –

"Harry, you are my mate."

Harry fainted.


	4. Dark Feathers

When Harry awoke, it was to the sound of hushed voices. He continued to lie still for a few moments, pretending to sleep, so he could figure out just who was talking and what exactly they were discussing.

"He will speak to you when he awakes," came the voice of Malfoy, "until then, you might as well go back up to your office and wait for him." He did not seem pleased at all by the presence of the other person, who Harry assumed had to be a professor if they had an office at Hogwarts.

"That is alright Mr. Malfoy, I shall simply wait here to talk to Harry. This is obviously stressful for him, so maybe it is best if the three of us discuss this in the hospital wing, in case he passes out again." Harry quickly recognized the other voice as Professor Dumbledore. Oh well, there was no help for it, he was going to have to talk to them sometime. Although why was beyond him. What Malfoy had said was impossible, how could Harry be his mate? He hated him. He'd probably kill him in his sleep or turn him over to Lord Voldemort at the first opportunity.

He became aware of fingers gently stroking his hair. Based on how possessive Malfoy seemed to be over him, he doubted that they were the headmaster's. He opened his eyes, blinking at the bright lights of the hospital wing.

"Harry, my boy! It is good to see you awake. Mr. Malfoy informs me that you reacted somewhat negatively to his news? Well, I'm sure we can get everything sorted out." Trust the headmaster to play peace keeper. Did he not understand that Malfoy was the son of a convicted death eater? And that this was all probably some elaborate plan to capture Harry for Lord Voldemort?

Harry's frustrated thoughts were interrupted as he felt Malfoy's eyes on him. He turned to see the blonde boy sitting on the edge of his bed, watching him intently as he stroked Harry's hair. He paused as green eyes met his own and nodded at Harry before placing his hand in his lap instead.

"So Harry, as Mr. Malfoy's mate, you shall be-"

"What?" Harry quickly turned back to face the headmaster. You mean he was telling the truth?" He felt Malfoy flinch at the accusation. Professor Dumbledore simply chuckled, his eyes twinkling merrily.

"Yes Harry. You have come into your inheritance as a dark veela and Mr. Malfoy is your mate. I'm unsure as to how, I was unaware that either of your parents were veela, but that is a matter for another time. Right now, you and Mr. Malfoy can get settled into your new rooms and get to know one another."

"What?" Harry sat up. "New rooms? Why can't I stay in the Gryffindor tower?" Behind him, Malfoy growled lowly, clearly not liking this idea. The headmaster shook his head.

"I'm afraid not Harry. You need to be around Mr. Malfoy constantly for the first few months until your bond settles, and even then, as the dominant, he will be extremely possessive of you. You will need to share quarters. I have set you up a set of rooms and I will take you there now, if you are feeling well enough?"

Harry nodded, speechless. Dominant? What did that mean? He guessed he would have to ask Malfoy later. The headmaster didn't seem to be overly helpful in supplying information, but when it came to Harry, he never really was. Harry got up from the bed. His weak legs protested, but Malfoy quickly caught him when he nearly fell.

The headmaster observed him carefully. "Maybe you should stay here a bit longer and get some rest."

Harry shook his head. He spent enough time in the hospital wing as it was. "I can rest just as easily in the room, can't I? Please, just take us there." Green eyes silently begged the headmaster.

"Alright," he sighed, "but it is quite a distance, I'm not sure you'll be able to walk that-"

He stopped mid sentence as Malfoy gently scooped up Harry, lifting the smaller boy by with ease. He carried the dark veela bridal style, careful not to squash his wings. Harry let out a small squeak, but decided not to protest against the blonde's strange actions. If it would get the headmaster to hurry up and take them to their new rooms, he was all for it.

"Come along then." The headmaster led them through the castle, chattering along the way. Harry mostly tuned out what he was saying, but he did catch one thing.

"What do you mean I have to switch classes?"

"Simply that, Harry. You and Mr. Malfoy will have to take the same classes, so you will have to compromise and decided which ones to take. You will also have to get caught up in any classes you haven't taken before, but I am sure you will help each other out. Harry was slightly doubtful, but this new Malfoy didn't seem half as horrible as he had been in the past. Maybe he would let Harry still take some of his favourite classes? Without pitching too much of a fit?

He relaxed back into Malfoy's arms, feeling very tired. Turning his head into Malfoy's chest, he inhaled the other boy's scent. It was comforting, and he wondered why had he never noticed before. Shrugging it off as another veela thing, Harry allowed himself to sink into the comfort and fall asleep.

DMHP

Draco smiled gently at the sleeping form in his arms. His mate was adorable. If only he was like this all the time. Draco had guessed that Harry wouldn't readily accept what was going on, but the other boy seemed to be trying to resist with all the strength he had. Granted, at the moment, that wasn't much. He and Dumbledore arrived at the rooms, and Dumbledore smiled warmly at Harry, noticing for the first time that the boy was asleep and probably hadn't listened to half of what he had said.

"Dark Feathers" the headmaster stated clearly to what appeared to be a portrait of a young maiden. She smiled and opened up without a word. "Here you go Mr. Malfoy. Take good care of Harry now. If you need any help explaining things, I shall be in my office. Professor Snape can provide you with the password. You are both excused from class tomorrow, and I will require your course selections by the end of the day. You can resume classes the following day, if that is acceptable?"

Draco nodded and stepped into the rooms. The first room resembled a small common room, done in blue. He supposed that the Ravenclaw colours were supposed to be a compromise between their own houses. Two doors led off the room, one into the bathroom, which was also connected to the bedroom, and one directly to the bedroom. He entered the bedroom to find one bed. It was a king sized bed, but somehow he doubted that would matter much to Harry. It was likely that the smaller boy would pitch a fit over it when he awoke.

As for Draco, he was pleased. It would allow him to better watch over his mate, even when his submissive was asleep. He had no intentions of forcing Harry into anything, but he hoped the boy would be reasonable about sleeping in the same bed, although he doubted that Harry would believe that sleeping was Draco's only intention.

He sighed, gently pulling the blankets back to gently place Harry on the bed. He pulled up the covers, tucking his mate in, before making his way to the other side of the bed. He kicked off his shoes and climbed in, carefully wrapping himself around his mate's small form and fell fast asleep.


	5. Breakdown

Harry awoke feeling warm and _safe._ He opened his eyes, wondering where the feeling was coming from. He couldn't recall ever having felt truly safe in his life. An arm was wrapped around his middle, pulling his wings against a firm chest. He sighed, fairly sure he already knew who was sleeping next to him. He managed to turn around and found himself face to face with his sleeping mate. Mate. It still seemed so weird. He wasn't sure what all this meant, but he was sure that Malfoy would explain it to him soon enough.

He briefly wondered why he had to share a bed with the blonde, but at the same time he was loathe to complain and get a separate bed, if the alternative was that he could always wake up feeling this safe. He studied Malfoy as he slept. He guessed that he really should get used to calling him Draco now that they were mates. He looked so peaceful in his sleep. Blonde hair fell in front of his face, shifting slightly as he breathed in and out. He looked almost vulnerable like this. Detangling himself from the Slytherin's arms, he headed to the bathroom.

Draco awoke, wondering what had disturbed his sleep. Immediately he noticed that Harry was no longer in their bed. Where was his mate? Had he ran off? He did seem rather unsure about all of this. Not that Draco could blame him, it had all been thrust on him rather quickly. Had he been kidnapped? He jumped out of bed, stretching large white wings. Just as he was deciding where to begin his search, his raven-haired mate walked in from the bathroom. Relieved, Draco rushed over to his mate, holding the smaller boy close to him as he smelled Harry's hair, taking in his mate's scent and reassuring himself that Harry was safe.

Harry wriggled out of Draco's grasp. "Malfoy, what are you doing?" He demanded, irritated.

"I just wanted to make sure you were all right. I didn't know where you had gone."

Harry huffed, crossing his arms. "I think I can go to the bathroom without you assistance."

"I know." Draco sighed. "I'm sorry."

Harry watched him warily. This protectiveness must be another vela thing. It would explain why Draco had bee in the hospital wing when he had woken up. "It's alright." He sighed, "This is just all so new." He looked so defeated that Draco wanted nothing more than to embrace the other boy again, but he knew that it wouldn't be appreciated. Even Harry's wings seemed to droop. Draco made a mental note to teach Harry how to hide them later. It was terribly uncomfortable, but he doubted that his mate wanted the entire school to know about his inheritance.

"What does all of this mean anyway? Why am I your mate? Why are you being so nice to me?" Harry collapsed to the ground, trying to hold back tears. He was so confused and a little scared. He wrapped black wings around himself, letting out a surprised squeak when he was suddenly lifted into the air. He was gently placed on the bed, strong arms and white wings wrapped around him protectively. He felt himself melt into the embrace, the same safe feeling he had felt before washing over him. He buried himself in his mate's embrace and just cried.

Hands caressed his wings and back, soothing him, but allowing him to release everything that had built up. He found himself crying not only because of his current situation, but for everything. That a Dark Lord was out to get him, that his godfather was dead, that he was nothing but a pawn to the light, destined to defeat said Dark Lord, that his only living relatives treated him horribly. He couldn't remember the last time that he had cried, but he released it all, everything, as his mate simply held him, rocking him back and forth.


	6. Veelas and Quidditch

As Harry awoke, he came to the conclusion that he had woken up in strange places far too frequently lately. Currently he was in Malfoy's arms. The blonde was awake, simply stroking Harry's hair and wings, so he decided he probably hadn't been asleep too long this time. It was kind of embarrassing to have cried himself to sleep in the arms of his arch nemesis, but then again, Malfoy was supposed to be his mate, whatever that meant.

Noticing that his little mate was awake, Draco carefully released Harry, sitting back to study him carefully. It was morning now, but they had been given today off by the headmaster. However, they still had some things to get done. Namely, figuring out their schedules and explaining the basics of veelas and their mates to Harry. He hoped that both of these tasks would go smoothly.

"Come along Harry, time for breakfast." Draco headed out into their main area, snapping his fingers. Asking the house elf for a bit of everything for breakfast, he soon had quite the meal laid out on the table in front of the fireplace. Harry followed him in slowly, seemingly still unsure of the blonde. "You are far too skinny, come and eat."

Harry grumbled to himself. Everyone always thought he was too skinny. If they had grown up with the Dursleys, they would probably be underweight too. Nevertheless, he sat down and drank a glass of pumpkin juice and nibbled on some toast and jam. He never could eat too much the first day back, as his stomach was still getting used to having real food.

Draco observed his mate with a frown, but decided not to comment. If the other boy wasn't used to eating a lot, which, judging by his physical appearance was likely, then it was better that he didn't push it this morning. He would just try to get him to eat more as time went on. He piled his own plate with pancakes and sausages and dug in.

Once they were done eating, the house-elves came and took away the remains of breakfast. Draco picked up the two class schedules that the headmaster had left behind. Hmmm… So they could take a maximum of ten classes, but that would be suicide. Only Granger took a full ten. So there was going to have to be some major compromise involved in order to get them on the same schedule.

Setting them both on the table so that Harry could see them, he glanced them over. He was enrolled in Potions, Charms, Arithmancy, Ancient Runes, Transfiguration and Defense the Dark Arts. So the only thing that Harry was taking that he wasn't was Herbology. He could add that, it would just give him less study time, but that could work. The trouble was going to be catching Harry up in Arithmancy and Ancient Runes. Hmmm… Well, if he attended Arithmancy, he could probably teach himself most of the Ancient Runes curriculum and simply take the exam at the end of the year. That way he would still have some free time to catch Harry up and time for other activities… Wait a moment. Quidditch. He wasn't altogether certain that was something he wanted to bring up with Harry.

Harry wasn't difficult to convince into taking Arithmancy. He just seemed to be happy that he got to keep Herbology. Draco wondered why. He thought the boy had wanted to be an auror? Maybe something had changed. He decided to file it away and ask about it later. He was just glad that Harry wasn't taking Care of Magical Creatures. Not only did Draco really despise that class, but with the sort of creatures Hagrid brought in, it would be nearly impossible to keep his mate safe.

After handing a house-elf a list of the classes they wished to take, as well as a note on Ancient Runes, to deliver to Dumbledore, Draco turned hesitantly to his mate. "Harry, um, about quidditch…"

"What about it? I've been made captain, they lifted the ban." Harry looked at Draco curiously. What did quidditch have to do with anything? He watched the blonde flinch as though he had hit him. What was going on?

"Yes, about that. You can't play."

"What the hell is that supposed to mean? You may be my mate, but you can't tell me what I can and can't do!"

"I can't, but the official rules can. Neither of us can play, since we are magical creatures."

"What? That's not fair!" Harry was angry. Quidditch was one thing he truly enjoyed. Although he had to admit, if Draco wasn't playing it would have been rather boring. He sighed defeated. Did anything good come from being a bloody bird?

"We could always play scrimmages, or seekers games if you like?" The blonde looked hopeful, but Harry wasn't sure if he was simply hoping Harry wouldn't explode or that he actually hoped Harry would play with him.

"That won't be so bad." Harry relented. He guessed this couldn't be easy on the Slytherin seeker either. Throwing a fit wasn't going to get him anywhere.

"Speaking of veela traits? When are we going to discuss this?" Harry questioned.

Draco sighed. This wasn't going to be a pleasant conversation, but they might as well discuss it now. The question was, how exactly was he supposed to explain to the Gryffindor that not only were they made for each other, but that they were bonded to each other forever?


	7. To Be a Mate

Harry stared expectantly at Mal-Draco. He had to think of him as Draco. He waited for him to speak. The blonde seemed nervous and hesitant.

"As you know," he started, glancing at Harry nervously, trying to gage his reaction. "You are my mate." Harry nodded, waiting for the blonde to continue. "I've known for a very long time what I was and what to expect come my sixteenth birthday. I knew that my mate could be anyone with veela blood. That could mean anyone, as you are aware, even people who know nothing of their own heritage." He sighed, closing his eyes for a moment before looking Harry directly in the eye.

"That is why I am being nice to you. That is why I am being patient and why I am so over protective. What we had, that doesn't matter to me anymore. I knew the day would come that I would find my mate and I knew that if they were someone I knew, I might have to ignore everything I had ever thought about them and get to know the real them. This isn't some fling Harry. It isn't going to go away. It's not a dream you might wake up from at any moment. This is our future.

'We are made for each other. Magically. Our souls are compatible, it's the way veela are. We are soul mates." Harry stared at Draco open mouthed. Soul mates? How was that possible? They were nothing alike! Then it hit him. They _were _nothing alike. They were complete opposite. Like two halves to the same whole. They had what the other lacked.

Draco was starting to get nervous. His mate had been staring at him with the same look of absolute shock for several minutes now. Was he okay? Draco lightly touched his mate's shoulder and the raven haired boy seemed to shake himself back to reality.

"There's another thing. It will be slowed down a little because we have found each other and will be in close contact, and we can touch each other regularly, but we are going to have to bond before too long. If we don't, then we will both be driven mad."

Harry stared at him again. "By bond, you mean…"

"Consummate it. Have sex." Draco replied flatly.

Harry looked at him in something that might have been horror. It hurt Draco deeply, but he didn't let it show. "I'm not ready for that." The smaller boy said.

"I know." Sighed Draco. "As I said, we don't have to worry about it yet, now that we have found each other, but soon it will become an issue." He paused. "If we aren't mated by just after Christmas, we will probably begin to really notice the affects."

Harry nodded silently. Christmas. He could probably handle that. He would have to get to know Draco more first, but that was inevitable anyway. The headmaster had said that they could barely be away from each other until they were bonded. He had also mentioned that Draco would be extremely protective and possessive until then. Harry hoped that he had exaggerated, but he doubted it.

"How will your family react to this?" Harry wondered, looking at Draco.

"Father won't take it well, but he is in Azkaban for the moment anyway. Mother won't mind. She understands how veela mates work and she is more neutral than my father anyway."

Harry nodded. Alright. Draco's next question surprised him.

"How about your family?"

"The muggles?" Harry asked, to clarify. Usually he considered the Weasleys and Hermione to be his family, but he doubted that was what Draco had meant. He felt a pang in his chest. How was he going to explain this to Ron and Hermione? How would they take it? Chances were, Hermione would leap into research mode to verify Draco's story, but Ron, he could be rather thick headed sometimes. It was hard to say.

"Yes." Harry almost had forgotten the question Draco was answering, so it took him a moment to respond.

He simply laughed dryly. "Did you not see what they did to me when they found out?"

Draco sat there stunned. He had known that someone must have hurt his mate, but it was his own family? The people who were supposed to take care of him.

Harry sighed, watching the confusion wash over Draco's face. "This really isn't new Draco. I've been my cousin's punching bag for years and I slept in a cupboard until I was eleven. Just promise me that I never have to go back there again."

No big deal? Draco fumed silently. This was a huge deal. Those muggles deserved to die for what they had done to his mate. He knew in his heart though, that Harry would never allow it, no matter what they had done to him. His heart was too pure. Which was why it made a perfect match to Draco's black one.

He noticed Harry watching him, worried. What had his mate said again? Remembering the question, he rushed to comfort his mate. "Never Harry. Never again. You are mine now."

Harry wasn't sure he liked the suggestion that Draco owned him, but they would deal with that later. He didn't have to go back to the Dursleys. It was like a dream come true. He would have been able to leave after his seventeenth birthday anyway, but after what had happened, going back was probably suicide.

He started slightly as warm arms wrapped around him, drawing him into the other boy's lap. Gratefully, he accepted the comfort, laying his head on Draco's shoulder as the other boy stroked his hair, crooning softly.

Somehow, things would be all right.


	8. Confrontation

Draco had just sent their course selections to Professor Dumbledore via a house elf when the quiet of their rooms was interrupted by a knocking on their portrait. Harry tensed, realizing he was still in borrowed infirmary pajamas.

"I don't have any of my things." He whispered, as it dawned on him that the Dursleys would likely burn all of his belongings, leaving him with nothing.

Draco shook his head, "Your trunk arrived earlier when we were sleeping. It's in the bedroom. You can go get dressed, I'll get the door."

Harry sighed in relief, racing into the bedroom. His trunk was there, as Draco had said, and thankfully, even his photo album and invisibility cloak were inside. Everything had been recovered. Hedwig's cage was also there, but the owl herself was probably in the owlery. He would have to go visit her later.

Shouting came from the main room, and he hurried to get dressed so that he could go investigate.

HPDM DMHP HPDM

Draco opened the portrait to find the Weasel and the-. No. Weasley and Granger. He had to be civil to them, as they were important to Harry. They glared at him, holding their books. They must have come straight from class.

"Malfoy!" Weasley snarled. "What are you doing-", his shouting was cut off as Granger calmly took over.

"Malfoy. Professor Dumbledore said we could find Harry here?"

Draco nodded, "Yes. He's just getting dressed." He sighed, resigning himself. "Come in, I'm sure he'll be out in a moment."

They had barely entered the room when a blur rushed past Draco, embracing the two visitors. "Ron! Mione!"

"Harry." Granger breathed, tightly hugging the small boy back. "Since when do you have wings?"

Harry blushed. He'd forgotten about that. Hermione carefully adjusted his shirt so that the wings could come through comfortably, shooting Draco an odd look at the growl he produced when she drew her wand.

"Long story. Why don't you sit down?" Hermione complied, but Ron continued to stand, arms crossed and glaring at Draco.

"What is he doing here Harry?"

Harry sighed. "That's part of the story Ron. Just sit down?"

Ron grudgingly sat, continuing to glare at Draco as the blonde sat next to Harry.

His friends listened as Harry gave them a summary of the events that had taken place since his birthday, ignoring Draco's growl when his relatives were mentioned. When he explained that Draco was his mate, and that he was a dark veela, Ron seemed to deflate.

"Rotten luck mate." Draco hissed slightly at the term of endearment. After all, Harry was Draco's mate, not Ron's. Harry and Hermione just stared at Ron in surprise.

"What?" He replied. "Harry will die if separated from Malfoy, or the git's killed. In wizarding world, you grow up to stories about veela mates. It's considered unbelievably lucky to have that kind of bond. At the very least, Malfoy can't hurt Harry." He made a face. "Too bad it's Malfoy."

Malfoy glared at the red head, while Harry shook his head.

"If you're a veela too," Hermione addressed Malfoy, "Why don't you have wings?"

"I do, I've just learned to conceal them." He released his wings, a special charm on his shirt allowing them to go through the cloth. Harry's eyes were bright.

"You have to teach me that!"

Draco chuckled softly, "I will. It's not very comfortable, but very useful."

Hermione seemed to be practically twitching in her seat, obviously full of unanswered questions. Finally she jumped up, grabbing Ron. "We'll see you later Harry! I've got to go check some things." She turned to leave. "Oh! Before I forget, here are the notes, and assignments from today. Don't want you to fall behind." She dumped her books on the table. "I'll leave the Runes and Arithmacy ones as well, you take those classes right Draco?" Draco nodded. "Perfect, I'll come by to pick them up later."

Harry laughed. "Have fun in the library Hermione! Let me know what you find out." The young witch grinned, dragging a protesting Ron along with her.

"Well that went better than expected." Harry sighed, leaning into his mate. He needed comfort, and it seemed to roll off of Draco in waves.

Draco looked puzzled. "What were you expecting? Aren't you lions extremely loyal?"

Harry made a face. "Yah, until I'm a parselmouth or claim that Voldemort's back." Draco flinched slightly at the name. Harry sighed. "Sometimes Ron reacts badly, like when I was entered into the Triwizard tournament. I'm just glad that he's taking this so well."

Draco nodded. "Well, he's right. Young witches and wizards dream of being mated to a veela. Unfortunately for them, they would need veela blood themselves for that to happen."

Harry perked up suddenly. "Can you show me that spell now? For the wings?" Draco smiled. He helped Harry to remove his shirt, swallowing a growl at how badly his mate's ribs showed, before removing his own shirt. They spent the rest of the afternoon working on the charm until Harry could do it perfectly by himself.

Harry stood in the mirror, staring at his wingless reflection. He was very proud that he could now hide his wings. He rolled his shoulders. Draco was right about it being uncomfortable though. Harry would probably leave his wings out in the rooms. The charm did give him a sense of control over his life though, something that his inheritance has stripped away from him.


End file.
